Re: Re: DCI in Baltimore


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Posted by Leland on August 14, 2000 at 07:26:21:

In Reply to: Re: DCI in Baltimore posted by Doug on August 13, 2000 at 21:27:48:

Getting a hold of the drill is one thing, but trying to teach it is another -- and more important to know than what the dots on the field are. You can already see the shapes right there on the TV screen, anyway. You can also see some of the really complex pathways that the players sometimes have to make, and the specific footwork the drumline uses to pull off their moves & direction changes.

Best to go watch a corps rehearse or actually march in one. Learn why the sections are placed where they are. Find out what visual & aural accommodations are made for the bass brass (such as tubas... had to say something to make this tuba-related ;-) ). Learn what kinds of forms & moves can be easily taught and still look cool, and what kinds can need three months just to become consistent. When I wrote drill for the college band I marched in, I drew on my own marching experiences and analyzing a whole lot of DCI and BOA video, including being on tour to see how shaky some corps moves were in the first month of the season and how some moves were easy but spectacular -- and kept in mind that some of our band members had never marched with an instrument before. I made a point to have it "learnable in two tries", and it worked (my secrets - straight individual paths, and few meshes).

Believe me, if I got hold of Cadets' drill and tried to teach it to my former band, there would be some scared kids, and possibly damaged instruments, out there...


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